"E-eeehh? W-what are y-you..?!"

The flustered girl in his arms made unintelligible sounds after her surprised yelp.

The whole thing was shocking, after all.

"Please bear with me, Ciara. Hold on tight.. this will be a rough one!"

"O-okay.."

Ciara wrapped her arms around Jerry, blushing as she looked away. It seemed she finally understood the situation.

'I-I'm sorry to put you through this, Ciara.. really!'

Jerry was simply following the method he knew best. Fear made a person slow. Ciara's motor functions would definitely become compromised due to her current state.

'If I let her run with me, chances of the both of us getting caught is higher. And I can't allow that!'

To increase their chances of survival, it had to come to this.

"[Elemental Chamber: Armament]!"

Instantly, condensed Mana formed all over Jerry's body.

Usually, the destructive flames would have burst out, devastating everything around him, but he had learned to compress this energy to simply serve as a thin shroud for himself.

This made it all the more powerful!

He became stronger, faster.. and overall more powerful.

Of course, it limited the range of his offensive capabilities as he would only be able to engage in Melee combat. However.. with the boosts it offered, this 'Armament' form was perfect for certain moments—like now.

'I'll save Bond Magic and Fusion for later..'

With that, he leaped into action.

>BOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMM<

The platform he stood on was completely eviscerated as he launched his body forward. The wind violently blew against him, though his current state made it no problem at all.

As for Ciara, though, she covered her eyes due to the sheer speed at which Jerry was moving.

>FWOOOOOOSHHHHH<

The monsters stood no chance.

They violently lunged at him, but he easily evade them.

Leaping and running while using the walls as footholds, Jerry swept through the grotesque beings in a flash.

He made sure to kick the monsters that got too close for comfort, turning them to ash with only a single hit.

Due to Jerry's immensely concentrated power, a single blow from him would cause the pent-up pressure to instantaneously finish his target.

It was enough to destroy enemies with extremely high durability.

The mere matter of its focused range made it extremely deadly.

'Let's go! Yeah.. I can do this!'

Jerry zoomed past the monsters, successfully escaping the hallway. He sped to the stairs, trying to be light in his steps in order to prevent destroying any more of the areas.

By dispersing the energy that would have devastated the grounds he trod on, the boy ensured there was a foothold left for him to tread.

'They're still chasing me. Maybe..' Jerry's eyes narrowed at the monsters behind him.

He was maintaining a far distance from them, but it was still troubling that they followed him. He had ensured that his bright flames of light pervaded the entire area, so he wasn't particularly a beacon of light.

Still, they pursued him with such fervor that he simply had to shake them off permanently.

"A-ah!'

An idea popped into Jerry's head, and he decided to cut off every means of reaching him.

"Burst." He stomped the ground, glaring at the monsters some distance away.

>BOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMM<

The platform that spread from his position to the monsters instantly shattered, turning into ash in moments.

The ground beneath the monsters began breaking apart as well, causing them to fall to the lower floors.

"GUUAARRAAAAAKKKK!!!" Jerry ignored their screams and continued on to his destination.

The platform where he stood was also becoming unstable.

>WHOOOOOSSSSHHHH<

Akin to a blur, he raced past the slowly collapsing platform behind him.

The stairs were just in sight, and Jerry ascended them in a flash. He didn't halt for a second, even when he saw monsters at the very top of the stairs.

The boy simply steeled himself as he proceeded to break through. There was only one thought on his mind at this point.

And it wasn't Jared's mission to him.

It was the girl he tightly held in his grasp.

'Ciara.. just count on me!'

*

*

*

'Kyaaaa! Yesss! This is what it's supposed to be like!' Ciara's thoughts screamed as Jerry held her tight and sped through the enemies.

Her heart raced uncontrollably and she found her passion increasing at an uncontrollable rate.

Her cheeks were so flushed with pink, but it wasn't due to embarrassment.

'H-he's so cool!!!' Ciara's eyes sparkled as she stole a glance at her knight in shining armor—literally.

Her body was trembling fervently, causing Jerry to soothe her instantly. More determination filled his eyes as he tried even harder to protect her.

It made her ecstatic!

Of course, she wasn't shaking because she was scared. No, Ciara was just excited and moved by Jerry's coolness.

'So he still thinks I'm scared of the dark.. how cute.' She couldn't help but smile within herself.

Back when they were younger, she had wanted to spend more time with Jerry, so she'd had to resort to that narrative.

Thanks to her lie, though, she had been able to sleep beside him every night. He would speak to her, cuddle her, hold her tight.. he would do just about anything for her.

It had been paradise.

Ciara felt like his father suspected her lie, but thankfully he didn't call her out on it. It had been an obvious sign that he was in support of their relationship.

Still, she had gotten so accustomed to being with him at night that even when they had been at Ainzlark she would sneak into his room to watch him sleep.

It was a habit that refused to leave her.

And now.. who would have thought that he would hold her in his arms as he sped through a dangerous place—protecting her from the monsters around.

He truly was acting the part now.. like a knight in shiny armor.

'As expected.. you just needed a little push.' Ciara grinned.

With all the monsters around being under her mind control, she was successfully controlling the narrative.

'Should I make things a bit rougher? Maybe I should..'historical

If there was greater danger, wouldn't Jerry show even more of his cool side to her? His adorable expression as he did his best to protect his woman.. Ciara could never get enough of it!

'This is so goooood! I love you so much, Jerry!'